The use of accumulators to gather or accumulate individual sheets into groups of sheets is well known in the paper handling arts. Such devices send sheets seriatim towards an accumulating area where the sheets accumulate either one on top of the other ("over-accumulating") or one below the other ("under-accumulating").
A problem that has been faced in accumulators to-date concerns the use of a single accumulator to accumulate sheets of differing size. In the instant invention, the difference in size contemplated concerns differences in width between sheets. To meet the requirement that the accumulator may handle sheets of differing widths, the accumulator needs to be adjustable in the transverse direction in some manner.
A second problem which has been faced in accumulators to-date concerns the changing from over to under accumulating and vice-versa without the need for substantial reconstruction of the accumulator.
While solutions that make accumulators adjustable with respect to sheet width have been offered (U.S. Pat. No. 5,244,200 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,590,873), as will be described below, each has its limitations. Furthermore, there are no accumulators out in the market that allow for the easy changing from over to under accumulating.
Accordingly, there remains room for improvement within the art of sheet accumulators.